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Tag: USPTO

Life Science Companies: Your AI Invention Could Be at Risk

Life Science Companies: Your AI Invention Could Be at Risk

September 30, 2025 | By: Anna Kinney An April 2025 Federal Circuit decision[i] and USPTO guidance[ii] updated August 2025 provide a clearer understanding of how courts and patent examiners evaluate AI inventions, highlighting common pitfalls that can affect life science companies using AI systems for technological breakthroughs. Federal Circuit Rejects Generic AI The Federal Circuit… Continue reading Life Science Companies: Your AI Invention Could Be at Risk

Design Patent Best Practices: Everything You Need to Know

Design Patent Best Practices: Everything You Need to Know

September 26, 2025 | By: Anna Kinney and William Flachsbart   Avoid Common Pitfalls Design patent applications often face rejections due to common, preventable mistakes. An analysis of over 85 USPTO office actions reveals that drawing quality issues dominate, appearing in over half of the cases reviewed. The most serious rejections involve prior art anticipation,… Continue reading Design Patent Best Practices: Everything You Need to Know

Design Patent Continuations Explained: Maximizing Your IP Portfolio

September 4, 2025 | By: Mark Magas   In an earlier article focused on utility patents, I described why patent owners should consider filing a patent continuation. A continuation is a separate patent claiming priority to the original patent that may include additional claims based on the original patent’s specification. There are several benefits to… Continue reading Design Patent Continuations Explained: Maximizing Your IP Portfolio

PROSECUTION LACHES AFTER GOOGLE V. SONOS—(MOSTLY) TOOTHLESS BUT NOT DEAD

PROSECUTION LACHES AFTER GOOGLE V. SONOS—(MOSTLY) TOOTHLESS BUT NOT DEAD

August 28, 2025 | By: Robert Greenspoon   The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a significant ruling in Google v. Sonos on August 28, 2025. Its decision on an issue called “prosecution laches” significantly improves the value of many existing patent portfolios. In particular, the ruling may breathe new value into those… Continue reading PROSECUTION LACHES AFTER GOOGLE V. SONOS—(MOSTLY) TOOTHLESS BUT NOT DEAD

A Proposal to Improve Patent Examination: Using an Invalidity Decision Date as a Damages Cutoff Date, to Incentivize Third-Party Use of Existing and Potential Prior Art Submission Programs During Examination

A Proposal to Improve Patent Examination: Using an Invalidity Decision Date as a Damages Cutoff Date, to Incentivize Third-Party Use of Existing and Potential Prior Art Submission Programs During Examination

March 11, 2025 |  By: Jeff Burke and Robert Greenspoon   Proceedings brought about by the America Invents Act, such as the Inter-Partes Review (IPR), may have stifled innovation. Indeed, inventor and commentator Neal Solomon outlines many problems with these proceedings, such as more lax legal standards and asymmetric cost burdens allocated to patent holders,… Continue reading A Proposal to Improve Patent Examination: Using an Invalidity Decision Date as a Damages Cutoff Date, to Incentivize Third-Party Use of Existing and Potential Prior Art Submission Programs During Examination

Five (Almost) Instant Fixes to the Patent System That the Trump USPTO Can Deploy (and One Bonus)

Coke Morgan Stewart, Acting Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, has the power to make five (almost) instant fixes to the patent system.

January 30, 2025 |  By: Rob Greenspoon   Inventors and innovative companies welcomed the news that the new administration immediately appointed Coke Morgan Stewart as Acting Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Challenges lie ahead. But for first time since Andrei Iancu years (or even earlier, the David Kappos years), innovators feel… Continue reading Five (Almost) Instant Fixes to the Patent System That the Trump USPTO Can Deploy (and One Bonus)

A Very Demure, Very Mindful Trademark Problem: Prior-Filed Applications for Your Trademark

Jefferson Bates filed to trademark VERY DEMURE VERY MINDFUL before Jools LeBron (TikTok @joolieannie) could register her viral phrase, but

August 30, 2024 |  By: Michael Shafer and Alex Butterman   TikTok user Jools LeBron (@joolieannie) took the internet by storm when she posted a video encouraging people to be very demure and very mindful in applying their makeup.  The post went viral and Jools’ following skyrocketed to over 2 million followers on TikTok alone. … Continue reading A Very Demure, Very Mindful Trademark Problem: Prior-Filed Applications for Your Trademark

Why Should Your Business Ask an Attorney to File a Patent?

Why Should Your Business Ask an Attorney to File a Patent?

February 12, 2025 |  By: Robert Greenspoon   When you run a small business, protecting your unique inventions and ideas is crucial to maintaining a competitive edge. You need tools to help fend off copycats who would love to use your own ideas to steal your sales and compete against you. One of the most… Continue reading Why Should Your Business Ask an Attorney to File a Patent?

Registered vs. Unregistered Trademarks: What Businesses Need to Know

Registered vs. Unregistered Trademarks: What Businesses Need to Know

July 18, 2024 |  By: Alex Butterman   Trademarks — which can include words, phrases, symbols, designs, or a combination of these things — play a crucial role in establishing and protecting a brand’s identity: they help ensure that consumers can reliably identify the origin of a product or service, which can build brand loyalty… Continue reading Registered vs. Unregistered Trademarks: What Businesses Need to Know

“Significance” of Inventor Contributions to AI-Assisted Inventions – Red Flags and Potential Traps within Patent Office Guidance

“Significance” of Inventor Contributions to AI-Assisted Inventions – Red Flags and Potential Traps within Patent Office Guidance

May 3, 2024 |  By: Jeff Burke and Robert Greenspoon   Can we trust U.S.P.T.O. guidance on inventorship determinations for AI-assisted inventions, if that guidance runs headlong into case law precedent? Recently I started to believe the U.S.P.T.O. set a possible and unintended trap for its stakeholders. Their guidance calls something “significant” that other legal… Continue reading “Significance” of Inventor Contributions to AI-Assisted Inventions – Red Flags and Potential Traps within Patent Office Guidance

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As part of our effort to recruit, develop and retail the best and brightest attorneys, Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig offers a summer intern program for promising law school students who are looking to work as part of an innovative and incredibly successful team. With a global team of lawyers, selected candidates are able to work on high level projects in a collaborative space.

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